Lambton OPP and Walpole Island First Nation Police said a pedestrian was struck on Chiefs Road, near Austin Road, by a van travelling south, around 5:45 p.m. Sunday.

The victim, a 16-year-old Walpole Island girl, was taken to Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, Sydenham Campus, where she was pronounced dead.

The driver of the van, a 43-year-old Walpole Island woman, was not injured.

The OPP Technical Traffic Collision Investigation team was called in and traffic was rerouted for several hours.

Police are still investigating the incident.

This is not the first time a pedestrian has been struck in the area.

In 2008, a 29-year-old Walpole Island resident was taken to London hospital after he was struck by a vehicle on Dufferin Ave. in Wallaceburg. Police said at the time that the driver saw the body lying on the roadway, swerved, but was unable to avoid striking the man.

On New Year’s Day 2005, a 37-year-old Sault Ste. Marie man died after he was struck from behind by a speeding van while walking on Walpole Island. A 24-year-old Walpole Island woman pleaded guilty to criminal negligence, failing to stop at the scene of a collision and falsely reporting her van as stolen.

In 2003, a 38-year-old Walpole Island woman was struck by a vehicle while walking along Highway 40 in Wallaceburg. Police said she was hit by a vehicle driven by a 20-year-old Walpole Island man.